On Wednesday afternoon -- live from Times Square in New York City -- it was announced Johnson narrowly defeated Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton in the finals of the 64-player tournament, 52-48 percent.

"The people voted," Johnson said. "They got what they wanted. I'm very grateful. It means a lot."

There were more than 19 million votes over the course of the campaign with 651,794 cast for the finals matchup alone.

Newton was a favorite to win from day one, being named a top seed in the tournament's bracket, but Johnson quickly emerged as a legitimate contender, decimating the competition in each round of voting.

Both Johnson and Newton stated their cases in recent days, but it was clear the Panthers' quarterback wanted the distinction more. He released a seven-minute YouTube video showcasing his gaming room, expressing his love for the Madden series, and issuing an open challenge to Johnson to play him one-on-one.

"This is not a game," Newton said. "This is not a facade. I really am an official Madden player."

Johnson admitted he hasn't played Madden much since his college days at Georgia Tech. He's switched his allegiances to another popular EA Sports franchise.

"I'm more of a FIFA guy. I'm more of a soccer guy."

For football fans around the nation, those words could have been enough to squash the momentum of Johnson's campaign, but that wasn't the case.

As the victor, Johnson's health and performance will be under a microscope next season because of the dreaded Madden curse. Throughout the voting process, Lions fans expressed concern about the possibility, but Johnson has repeatedly said he doesn't believe in the curse.

Of course neither did last year's cover athlete, running back Peyton Hillis. But after a disappointing season, where he ran for just 587 yards and three touchdowns, Hillis changed his tune.

"Things didn't work in my favor this year," he said. "There's a few things that happened this year that made me believe in curses. Ain't no doubt about it."